Capitaine Paul Louis Malavialle was a French

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

flying ace A flying ace, fighter ace or air ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The exact number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an ace is varied, but is usually co ...

credited with five aerial victories.The Aerodrome websit

Retrieved 19 August 2020

Biography

See also

Aerial victory standards of World War I Aerial may refer to: Music * ''Aerial'' (album), by Kate Bush * ''Aerials'' (song), from the album ''Toxicity'' by System of a Down Bands *Aerial (Canadian band) * Aerial (Scottish band) * Aerial (Swedish band) Performance art * Aerial sil ...

Paul Louis Malavialle was born in Saint Jean de la Blaquere, France on 15 May 1888.''Over the Front: The Complete Record of the Fighter Aces and Units of the United States and French Air Services, 1914–1918'', p. 189 He began his required military service 31 May 1906, as a

Hussar A hussar ( , ; hu, huszár, pl, husarz, sh, husar / ) was a member of a class of light cavalry, originating in Central Europe during the 15th and 16th centuries. The title and distinctive dress of these horsemen were subsequently widely ...

. It is not known if he was released into the reserves at the end of his mandatory stint, nor his actions in the early days of World War I, other than the award for valor of the ''

Médaille Militaire The ''Médaille militaire'' ( en, Military Medal) is a military decoration of the French Republic for other ranks for meritorious service and acts of bravery in action against an enemy force. It is the third highest award of the French Republic, ...

''. Having earned Military Pilot's Brevet No. 520, he was posted to ''

Escadrille N.69 ''Escadrille Spa.69'' (originally named ''Escadrille N.69'') was a French fighter squadron derived from one of its military's oldest aviation units. Active from September 1915 until the 11 November 1918 Armistice, the ''escadrille'' campaigned on ...

'' as a

Nieuport Nieuport, later Nieuport-Delage, was a French aeroplane company that primarily built racing aircraft before World War I and fighter aircraft during World War I and between the wars. History Beginnings Originally formed as Nieuport-Duplex in ...

fighter pilot on 11 October 1915. On 8 March 1916, he shot down a

LVG Luftverkehrsgesellschaft m.b.H. (L.V.G. or LVG) was a German aircraft manufacturer based in Berlin- Johannisthal, which began constructing aircraft in 1912, building Farman-type aircraft. The company constructed many reconnaissance and light bombe ...

reconnaissance airplane for his first victory. On 1 April 1916, he was made a Chevalier of the ''

Legion d'Honneur The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon B ...

''; three days later, he was promoted to Lieutenant. After two more victories in September 1916, he was appointed to command the squadron on 25 January 1917. He scored his final two victories on 25 July and 24 October 1917, respectively. On 8 November 1917 Malavialle was promoted to ''Capitaine''. Under his leadership, his ''escadrille'' was twice

Mentioned in dispatches To be mentioned in dispatches (or despatches, MiD) describes a member of the armed forces whose name appears in an official report written by a superior officer and sent to the high command, in which their gallant or meritorious action in the face ...

. Paul Louis Malavialle survived the First World War, only to die of

Spanish flu The 1918–1920 influenza pandemic, commonly known by the misnomer Spanish flu or as the Great Influenza epidemic, was an exceptionally deadly global influenza pandemic caused by the H1N1 influenza A virus. The earliest documented case was ...

Constantinople la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه , alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth (Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya (Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis (" ...

on 20 December 1919.

Honors and awards

* Chevalier de la ''

Légion d'Honneur The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon ...

"A model of courage and devotion. Ever since the war started he has been an example of the highest military qualities. On 13 March 1916, he showed no hesitation in descending to 100 meters altitude over enemy lines to disengage a bombing aircraft from being attacked by an enemy plane. He forced the enemy plane to abandon the fight. Already cited twice in orders." Chevalier de la Legion d'Honneur citation

*''

'' * ''

Croix de Guerre The ''Croix de Guerre'' (, ''Cross of War'') is a military decoration of France. It was first created in 1915 and consists of a square-cross medal on two crossed swords, hanging from a ribbon with various degree pins. The decoration was first awa ...

'' with seven palms. * British

Military Medal The Military Medal (MM) was a military decoration awarded to personnel of the British Army and other arms of the armed forces, and to personnel of other Commonwealth countries, below commissioned rank, for bravery in battle on land. The award ...

* Italian

Medal for Military Valor The Medal of Military Valor (Italian language: ''Medaglia al valor militare'') is an Italian medal, originally established as a Sardinian award. It is awarded to military personnel, units above the level of company, and civilians for exceptio ...

Sources of information

References

* Franks, Norman; Bailey, Frank (1993). ''Over the Front: The Complete Record of the Fighter Aces and Units of the United States and French Air Services, 1914–1918'' London, UK: Grub Street Publishing. . 1888 births 1919 deaths French World War I flying aces Deaths from Spanish flu {{france-mil-bio-stub